hook, line, and sinker
by The Siege
Summary: —or, how a boy opens his eyes to two faces of one girl, and his love is never the same. [love square; au; canonverse; sequel to "a spark, and a fall"]
1. i

**hook, line, and sinker**

* * *

 **notes:** omg everything is au now because ORIGINS! xD if you're a new reader, hello! this story will be from adrien's pov and is kind of a sequel to _a spark, and a fall_ , which is in mari's pov. to returning readers, welcome back! there will be 7 chapters. i must apologize for these first few chapters: i wrote them rather late at night when i was supposed to be writing an essay lol and i felt super out of my zone, so they're gonna read kinda bland and boring. the last few chapters will be more exciting so stick around! :D if you find errors, totally let me know!

 **disclaimer:** i don't own miraculous ladybug or anything else you recognize. TT_TT

* * *

 _i._

Adrien doesn't believe in love at first sight, but he _does_ believe in true love.

The first time he sees Ladybug in action—there, in person, not on TV—is the first time he transforms into Chat Noir. He has no idea what he's doing, but he doesn't care—he's finally free, finally allowed to be anyone he wants to be, and he slips on a new persona like he slips into his leather suit, without care for any of the inevitable consequences. _I'm gonna be a hero_ is the only thought that runs through his mind.

He jumps into his first fight clumsily but not disastrously, thanks to years of fencing, instinctively extending his baton and scooping Ladybug out of the way before the akuma pounces on her.

"Thanks," she says gratefully, turning her electric blue eyes on him, and he stumbles. "You are?"

"Chat Noir, at your service," he introduces himself hastily, with a deep bow. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Ladybug."

The akuma roars and lunges at them, but they jump away, Ladybug naturally takes the lead as the villain chases them across the rooftops.

"Likewise. Is this your first time fighting akuma?" she asks as she leaps and dodges nimbly.

"'Fraid so."

She nods slowly. "Alright." And then she proceeds to lay out a plan that he never could have thought of and before long, the akuma is defeated, the butterfly purified.

The overwhelming sense of victory is something akin to the elation he feels every time he levels up in a video game, and he holds out a fist without thinking. "Mission accomplished!"

Ladybug raises a brow as she looks at the fist, and his cheeks color. He almost pulls his fist back, cursing himself for being such a dork, when he feels a gentle knock against his knuckles and finds her fist against his.

She smiles. "Thanks for your help, Chat Noir. I couldn't have done it without you."

His heart swells. It's not love—not even close. It's simply admiration—admiration because she is undoubtedly amazing and he thinks maybe being around her will make him amazing too.

And really, that's how it starts.

* * *

© Copyright 2016 by The Siege


	2. ii

**hook, line, and sinker**

* * *

 _ii._

The first time Adrien sees Marinette, she trips over her own feet and spills her belongings all over the ground. He can't deny the snicker that bubbles in his chest, but he rushes to help her.

He introduces himself and she stutters her way through her name, her eyes darting restlessly from his face to the sky to their surroundings (but she doesn't ask for his autograph). He feels discouraged, thinking he's made her uncomfortable, and quickly excuses himself.

It takes a long, long time for Marinette to relax around him and this fact always makes him doubt himself. Did he do something offensive to her? Why is she able to have a conversation with everyone except him (and that includes the ever-frustrating Chloe)?

Because how can he not notice her kindness and her intelligence, her initiative and creativity? She is fair and brave and confident—except around him. And he could never figure out why. And if she is all of those wonderful things, what does it say about him that she can't treat him like everyone else?

So when she approaches him of her own accord one rainy afternoon, offering her umbrella and then her time, he is pleasantly surprised. He had an exhausting weekend—physically and emotionally—and her presence is soothing. And he is so happy, so _relieved_ that she finally feels comfortable enough around him to open up and be his friend.

They begin to hang out with Alya and Nino after school and on the weekends, and he confirms that she is sweet and endearing and clumsy in the cutest way. She burrows under his skin and into his mind with astonishing speed and ease and sometimes, even the sight of Ladybug can't push Marinette out of his thoughts. Their friendship is simple and familiar and perfect and right and—

And he really should have known.

* * *

© Copyright 2016 by The Siege


	3. iii

**hook, line, and sinker**

* * *

 _iii._

His desire to know Ladybug's true identity is actually a relatively recent development.

Adrien falls for her, slowly but surely, and he doesn't realized he loves her until it hits him one day that he falls asleep thinking of her eyes, to dreams of her laughter and the feel of her hands in his, and wakes up to her smile.

And so begins the intense urge to know everything about her.

His efforts are blocked every time, by none other than Ladybug herself, and the hurt and insecurity that fills him is almost too much to mask. He loves her so much and he trusts her more than anyone in the world—he would tell her his deepest, darkest secrets if she asked—and he thought she trusted him just the same.

His blatant flirtations belie the depth of his feelings, and maybe it's his own fault for not making his sincerity clear, right from the beginning.

But he hasn't done anything to warrant this awkward behavior from her. He racks his brain, even tries apologizing for, well, anything, but Ladybug just snaps at him and then apologizes profusely. He's so confused and his heart hurts enough already—the distraught look on Marinette's face when she had (somehow) figured out that he's Chat Noir is stuck in his mind, second only to the pitying looks he receives from her parents only minutes later when they gently tell him she doesn't want to see him—that he just falls silent and helps her defeat the akuma as speedily as possible. He doesn't stay to talk to her, doesn't even offer their customary fist-bump, deciding to just go home and sleep and forget about life for a while.

Joke's on him: his dreams that night are Marinette and Ladybug both staring down at him in disappointment, and he wakes up feeling more soul-bruised than he ever thought possible.

* * *

© Copyright 2016 by The Siege


	4. iv

**hook, line, and sinker**

* * *

 _iv._

He's fed up.

He's reached the end of his rope, run out of patience, unable to wait any longer: Marinette's avoidance of him is obvious and painful and easily misunderstood, and he's simply _had enough_.

It pours that night, but he angrily shouts, "Plagg, claws out!" and carves his way to Marinette's balcony. The moon is hidden and the every drop of rain is like a needle stabbing into him and he's practically snarling by the time he lands and pounds on her window.

Her big blue eyes widen—with fear? concern? uncertainty? excitement?—at the sight of him and he can tell she's _this close_ to just ignoring him, but he must look too much like a well-drowned cat to turn him away, good Samaritan that she is.

She opens the window reluctantly. "Quick, don't let the rain in."

He dives past her and sits resolutely on the ground, arms crossed, hoping she'll realize that he's not leaving without answers. He hears her heavy sigh as she latches the window closed again and shivers when she brushes past him.

She reappears with a fluffy blue towel and her hands are achingly gentle as she dries him off. It makes him want to cry.

He mutters under his breath and there's a bright flash of green and he's Adrien Agreste again, sitting stubbornly on in Marinette Dupain-Cheng's room, with Plagg buzzing around annoyingly and searching for cheese. She jumps back with a surprised gasp before quietly reassuring Plagg that there is plenty of cheese downstairs and she's perfectly happy to retrieve some for him in a few minutes. Appeased, Plagg flies away into the depths of her room and leaves them alone.

He waits, refusing to turn around. His chest tightens as she exhales shakily, his hair dripping sadly down his face and making him shiver. And then the towel engulfs his head, her hands slowly rubbing the rain out of his hair, and the knot inside him loosens just a bit. He slumps over and his eyes close and there's an itch in the bridge of his nose.

But he will _not_ cry.

"Ch—A-Adrien," she says timidly, breaking the silence. "What...what are you doing here?"

He doesn't answer.

"It's storming outside and—and you could've slipped and fell and gotten hurt and—and—I mean, did it have to be tonight? It could've been any other—"

"How did you know?"

The words is muffled by the towel, but his voice is loud enough that he knows she understood him. Her hands freeze on his head.

"Wh-what do you mean?"

"you know exactly what I mean," he replies sharply, yanking the towel off and finally meeting her eyes for the first time since he entered the room, but she averts her eyes immediately. "How did you know that I'm Chat Noir?"

She looks scared. Of _him_. Irrationally, he feels angrier. "I—I—"

"You've only met him, what, twice? Three times? How could you figure it out? How—"

"Please"—her voice breaks—" _please_ , Adrien, can we not do this today? Please, I'm just—I'm not ready and—and there are—other factors—and just—pleaseplease _please_ —"

"You've been avoiding me for a month, Marinette!" he explodes, catching her wrist and demanding her gaze. "Look at me! It's been a month and I'm done waiting. I gave you time to tell me on your own but _god_ , it's killing me and I just—I _can't_ —" He breaks off and shakes his head. "I can't do this anymore, Marinette."

The sound of a sob startles him into letting her go and _damn_ if he doesn't feel like the dirt beneath her shoe for making her cry— _even though he's not the wrong, goddammit, he's not!_ His hands flutter uselessly around her, afraid to touch, afraid to be still, and he's never felt as lost as he does now, trying and failing to comfort this strong, beautiful, crying girl.

"I-I'm s-s-sorry," she hiccups, wiping furiously at her eyes. "I just—I-I hoped—that you might—might f-figure it out on your o-own—"

Adrien pulls back. Confusion sweeps through him because he has _no_ idea what she's talking about. "What are you—what? Wait—what's going on?"

Marinette shakes her head fervently, still rubbing at her tears. "I'll just—I'll just show you. Tikki, spots on!"

And then the world as he knows it comes crashing down.

* * *

© Copyright 2016 by The Siege


	5. v

**hook, line, and sinker**

* * *

 _v._

He can't believe his eyes. He just—but she—but how— _what?_

"You—are Ladybug?" he chokes out, unable to blink or look away from the love of his life, who apparently also happens to be the girl who sits behind him in the class, the girl he's grown close to, the girl he has spent the better part of the last few months agonizing over.

Marinette is Ladybug. Ladybug is Marinette.

 _Does not compute_ , his brain murmurs faintly.

Her eyes— _Ladybug_ 's eyes—fill with renewed tears and suddenly he's watching the heroine he loves break down and cry. And he's too shocked to move.

"I know—I'm not what you expected"—gasp—"y-you're disappointed th-that it's me, it's just Marinette, and _you're_ —you're _Adrien Agreste_ and _Chat Noir_ and I'm just—I'm sorry—this is why I didn't"—sob—"didn't want you t-to know, because y-you would look at m-m-me like _that_ —oh god, this was a bad idea, _this was such a bad idea_ —"

And then she's crying too hard to speak.

Plagg zooms back over, irritated. "Hey, where's my chee—"

Ladybug— _Marinette_ —gasps and sprints away, her movements jerky but inconspicuous as ever. Adrien's eyes follow her until she disappears and then they land on Plagg, who is glaring at him with the most disapproval he's ever seen from anyone (except maybe his father).

"What did you do _now_ , Adrien?" Plagg demands, frowning harshly. "Shouldn't you be happy? You've wanted to know who Ladybug is for the longest time, and now you go and make her cry?"

"I...I just...Marinette..." Adrien trails off, unable to form a full, coherent thought. His mind is frazzled and his limbs feel heavy and he feels like he's dreaming—

He's transformed and out the window just as Ladybug— _Marinette_ —returns with a handful of cheese and mumbling shyly that she hopes Plagg doesn't mind the selection.

He can feel Plagg buzzing angrily in the back of his mind but he doesn't stop. He allows himself one glance back at Ladybug— _Marinette_ , goddammit—and the sight of her wide-eyed, tear-stained, expectantly defeated look will haunt his dreams for a long, long time.

* * *

© Copyright 2016 by The Siege


	6. vi

**hook, line, and sinker**

* * *

 **notes:** omg omg omgo mgo mog gmogmgmomogmg I AM SOOOO SORRY! i haven't forgotten about this story, i SWEAR, i just got wayyy sidetracked by school TT_TT and life and just EVERYTHING and idk i was super uninspired? i couldn't get back into the voice of this story. i'm not really satisfied with this chapter (or the next) but it's as good as it's gonna get now. i figure i might as well post it. anyway please enjoy! the final chapter is written and will be posted tomorrow (let's hope i don't forget ahaha). enjoy!

* * *

 _vi._

She's not angry with him.

That much is clear to Adrien: Marinette absolutely expected him to never speak to her again if he found out she is Ladybug. And he really hates himself for meeting those expectations.

It's just—Marinette is Marinette, Ladybug is Ladybug, and they were never supposed to be the same person. They just—he can't—because—

 _He was supposed to know._

He was supposed to recognize her civilian identity at first sight, supposed to figure out the puzzle himself, supposed to _love_ her and know her _so well_ that her real identity should have been obvious to him.

Does he have any right to claim he loves Ladybug when he couldn't even recognize her eyes staring at the back of his head in school every day? Does he have any right when he only fell in love with half of her true self?

 _She wasn't supposed to be Marinette!_

Because honestly, Marinette is Ladybug's opposite in every way.

"No, she isn't," Plagg denies after swallowing down a piece of cheese, glaring at the boy wallowing on his bed. Adrien looks up questioningly. "You humans are so dumb. Why are you focusing on the differences? You think you couldn't figure it out because Marinette and Ladybug are opposites? That's not true at all. We kwami don't just choose any random people to be our Miraculous holders, you know."

Adrien furrows his eyebrows. "I—what do you mean?"

Plagg rolls his eyes and heaves a sigh, crossing his little arms. "Look, kid, I chose you 'cause you have a good heart and 'cause you have a crazy side that every Chat Noir needs. Chat Noir's personality has always been part of you; I didn't _give_ it to you." Adrien nods slowly in understanding, so Plagg continues, "It's the same for Ladybug. Marinette has always been strong and brave and everything that Ladybug is. The Miraculous just brings out her heroic traits even more because Ladybug is a _hero_. _Both_ of you are. You're icons, role models. You're _supposed_ to be exaggerated, you're _supposed_ to stand out and make everyone wanna be you. You're _supposed_ to be just a little bit out of reach. But they're not your opposites."

"So..." Adrien says slowly. "What you're telling me...is that I'm just blind? I just couldn't see it? I couldn't even see the similarities between Marinette and Ladybug despite how close I was to both of them? Or how close I _thought_ I was?" Adrien buries his face in his hands again and groans. "I guess I don't know either of them as well as I thought."

Plagg flew over and slapped Adrien on the back of his neck with his tail.

"Ow! Plagg! What was that for?" Adrien grimaced, rubbing at the reddening skin on his neck.

"Get over yourself, Adrien! Why are you here feeling sorry for yourself when you should be worrying about Marinette? Didn't you see the way she reacted when you found out?" Plagg demands.

"What—"

 _Knock knock._

Adrien whirls around to find Ladybug— _Marinette_ —dangling just outside his window. His jaw drops and he hurries to open it. "Lady—Mari—I mean—what are you—"

She swings in and lands softly, smiling softly at Plagg. "Hello. Plagg, isn't it? Tikki told me a lot about you. I brought you some cheese."

Plagg lands in her cupped hands and grins up at her. "Oh, I _like_ you. Tikki chose well! Thanks for the cheese!" He gobbles it up and allows Marinette to rub his head, nuzzling into her fingers and making her giggle.

Adrien watches, a smile slowly spreading across his face without his knowledge.

Ladybug— _Marinette_ takes a deep breath and turns her attention to Adrien, who immediately straightens and puts on his poker face. "Um, hi Adrien."

"Hi." He almost winces at how cold he sounds but he can't help it: he's caught off-guard.

Marinette does wince, followed by a very visible gulp as she directs her gaze towards his feet. Adrien waits for her to talk—clearly she has something to say or she wouldn't be here—and takes the time to study her.

She looks almost—timid. It's the strangest thing he's ever seen, because she's still Ladybug, and Ladybug is nothing if not confident and in control. This—this is all Marinette, dressed up in her Ladybug armor. He wants to reach out and comfort her, but he doesn't know how, everything feels wrong.

"You can drop the transformation," he offers, trying for a smile, but she immediately shakes her head.

"No, thank you. Um." She wraps her arms around herself and caves in a little, still not looking at him. "Um, sorry about, you know, just dropping by. I would've given you a heads-up but—well, I just—anyway, I just wanted to say that, um, well, first of all, I'm really sorry. I know...I know you were—surprised that I turned out to be Ladybug. It almost seems like a joke, doesn't it?" she chuckles weakly to herself, and it's the most self-deprecating sound Adrien's ever heard in his life. His chest hurts. He's not sure what she's trying to say. "I just...I'm sorry, I know you loved—were so eager to—to find out who I—I mean, who Ladybug is and, well, you got _me_ , which is—but, um, just, I know things have been kind of, um, awkward? Lately, and I, um, well, I just think that, well, you know, the safety of Paris should be our top priority, you know? So, um, that is to say, that, um, we should...I mean, I-I hope that maybe, um, we could, like, just be professional? N-not that, not that you _aren't_ professional, I mean, I just—well, I mean, we should, um, put our awkwardness aside, because people's lives are at stake, you know? That's—I mean, we can do that right? I mean, we're Ladybug and Chat Noir, after all." She finally lifts her eyes to his and Adrien can't breathe.

He's never seen Ladybug _or_ Marinette like this. She's not _supposed_ to be this—this vulnerable, this insecure, this afraid— _goddammit, she's afraid of him_. She's afraid of what he thinks of her, of what he's going to tell her, and she's just _not supposed to be like this_ and—

(She looks so fragile, holding herself together as if a single word from him will break her apart, so all he can do is nod, and she almost smiles, and then she's gone, and he suddenly has the feeling that Murphy's Law has been in effect this whole time.)

—and it's all his fault.

* * *

© Copyright 2016 by The Siege


	7. vii

**hook, line, and sinker**

* * *

 **notes:** here we are at the end! we made it folks. i will admit, i don't really like this chapter either; i don't really think it flows well and i'm super iffy on the ending? idk i kinda forgot where exactly i wanted these last 2 chapters to go so i just winged it and...well...let me know what you think. i tried to get back into the style of the story, idk if i really succeeded. thanks for reading everyone! enjoy! see you in the next fic! :D

* * *

 _vii._

Everything is different, now. He doesn't call her "my lady" anymore, and she's abandoned her cat-related pet names. There's a hole in his heart and in his gut; the easygoing camaraderie they had in their suits has become strained and tense and strictly professional, and their friendship is basically dead, and Adrien hates it. He hates everything about everything and he hates himself the most because he knows, _he knows_ , that he's the one at fault.

Even Plagg's taken to ignoring him half the time.

The thing is, he doesn't know how to fix—anything. What is he supposed to say, what is he supposed to do? He could apologize, but what, exactly, is he apologizing for?

Everyone—and he means _everyone_ —has noticed the change in dynamic between Chat Noir and Ladybug, and their class is still completely out of the loop about Adrien and Marinette. First Marinette was avoiding Adrien, then Adrien was avoiding Marinette, and now they were just—weird. Quiet. Not avoiding, but not seeking. No one can pry any answers from either of the two teens in question.

Adrien tries to think through the past few crazy months. So Marinette figured out he's Chat Noir and he found out Marinette is Ladybug and she thinks he's disappointed it's her—which is not exactly true. The truth is, at first, Adrien really had no idea how to feel about it. It didn't make sense to him, but he wasn't angry or disappointed—at least not with _her_. He was angry and disappointed with _himself_ because he thought he would know, he thought it would be obvious to him if ever he came across her true identity. And it turns out this whole time she's been there all along and he _never figured it out_ , had in fact forced her to show him the truth, and he just—couldn't deal with the fact that he didn't know her, either side of her, as well as he believed. He couldn't deal with his own oblivion and he took it out on her, he realizes now.

So he seeks her out and apologizes for it.

"I'm so sorry, Marinette, you didn't deserve how I treated you at all," Adrien practically grovels, eager to get back into her good graces. "I just—I thought I would _know_ , you know? But I didn't and it—it messed me up." He shakes his head. "Can you—can you forgive me?"

Marinette smiles, a tiny broken thing, and shakes her head gently. "There's nothing to forgive. You did nothing wrong, Adrien. It's my fault, really, I shouldn't have—shouldn't have let you build up illusions about—well, anyway. It's fine."

Adrien doesn't really understand what she means, there's something strange about her words, but she's already gone and he doesn't know how to ask.

So he lets it go and that's that.

Except things still aren't the way they used to be.

Marinette—as herself and as Ladybug—is still so careful around him, so unconfident and unsure of herself, and he just can't understand it. He watches her as her smiles grow less fake but never fully real, watches as she doesn't laugh, watches as she ignores rather than confronts. He feels a punch in his gut every time she subdues her reactions, retreats into herself. Why? What's wrong? What is he missing?

He's passing through the park one day and he spots Marinette playing with a small group of children. He watches her, smiling fondly, as she braids flower crowns and plays tag and _laughs_ like he hasn't seen her laugh in months. The kids love her, running around and giggling when she catches them and then lets them "overpower" her. Her hair's a mess and there's grass on her clothes and her eyes are sparkling and _she's so beautiful_ his heart aches _._

Adrien jolts back with the force of his thoughts. Something like epiphany strikes him.

And then, _of course_ , an akuma crashes in.

He quickly transforms behind a tree, preparing to jump out and fight when he sees Marinette trying to calm the kids and keep them safe. _Oh no_ , he thinks in dismay.

She stands in front of them with her arms thrown out, fearless, defiant, _gorgeous_ (it's all so _obvious_ now), as the akuma looms ever closer. He wants to yell at her to get away and just transform already, but instead she does the unthinkable: she picks up a handful of rocks and throws them at the akuma, distracting it and leading it away from the children. They watch her fearfully, reaching their little arms out for her, but she just flashes them a bright smile and motions for them to run in the opposite direction.

And then she takes off.

Swearing, Adrien runs and leaps towards the akuma, making contact with a hard kick before flipping back and landing on his hands and feet. The akuma swipes at him and out of the corner of his eye, Adrien sees a reddish flash of light and then Ladybug is swinging forward at the akuma. Adrien sighs in relief and and jumps up to join her. Their teamwork is smoother than it's been in a long while and they defeat the akuma easily.

But Marinette runs away before he can even look at her and smile and say "Mission accomplished!" so there's nothing to do but run after her.

He catches her back in the park, where she quickly releases her transformation behind a bush before jumping out and making sure the kids are okay. They all clamber for her embrace, before she pulls away and waves goodbye. She turns around to leave but her eyes land on him and she freezes.

He's Adrien again, not Chat Noir, but he can't help himself when he stomps up to her and demands, "Marinette, what the hell were you thinking? You could've gotten hurt!"

Surprise flashes through her blue eyes. "You...saw me?"

"Of course I saw you, that was so reckless, how could you—that's _my_ job! It's _my_ job to be reckless, and your job to—to not get hurt!" What is he saying, what is he saying, he has no idea what he's saying, _what is going on_ —

Suddenly, she's in his arms and he's burying his face in her neck and trying to hold back tears, and he's babbling on about missing her and needing her and (dear lord he's such a sap) wishing she would just tell him what's wrong so he could fix everything for her because _god he loves her so much, actually, it's almost a physical thing_ —

She shoves him away and he blinks uncomprehendingly at the space between them and the trail of tears down her face. She opens her mouth and a flood of words pour out, and really all he can catch is: "You're making this so difficult" and "I know you love Ladybug but" and "please stop doing this to me" and "no, it's not your fault at all, nothing is your fault, you're perfect" and "I'm a disappointment, I'm not suited to be Ladybug at all, I know, but I _am_ , and I love you, and it just _hurts_ , you know?" and Adrien can't listen to anymore.

Because _oh_ , he thinks. _Oh._

He steps forward, she steps back, but she stumbles and he lunges forward to catch her, and it's so reminiscent of that fateful day in the rain but this time—this time he's not letting her go, not for anything, and she's crying too hard to speak now.

"Marinette, look at me," he says softly. She's already shaking her head and hiccuping and decidedly _not_ looking at him and in any other situation, he would be smiling at how cute she is. He moves one hand from around her waist to cup her cheek, swiping at her tears with his thumb. She tries to turn away but he brings his other hand up as well and tilts her head up at him, holds her in place. He smiles softly, a little painfully, and she's so confused, he can see it in her eyes—

"Marinette," he whispers, and leans in.

Her hands clutch at his shirt; she's trembling. "No, wait—you don't—I'm not—"

"Yes, you are, my lady." His lips brush across forehead and she gasps a little. "It's you, and I love you."

A sob. "A-Adrien, don't—you can't—"

His lips move down to the corner of her mouth. He whispers into her skin, "Do you trust me?"

Her breath catches, Adrien's heart stops beating—but she nods. She nods firmly against him and it's an answer, a surrender, and a confession, all at once. "Yes. Of course. Do you trust me?"

He smiles and pulls back, looking into her eyes again. They're hopeful and open and so, so blue, and _it's her_ : everything he's ever wanted. "You know I do."

Adrien leans forward again and this time she meets him halfway.

It's not perfect, and it's not elegant, and it's definitely not an ending, but it's _theirs_.

* * *

© Copyright 2016 by The Siege


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